We spent a fun-filled, jam-packed, day in Bryce Canyon National Park in the Summer of 2019. This is my favorite National Park that I’ve visited so far. It is so beautiful! We drove down from Park City, Utah, and explored the park before heading on to Zion National Park. I might have cut it a bit close to make it there safely, however!
One day is not enough to spend here but it was a phenomenal day. We saw all the highlighted scenic overlooks. So, we technically saw it all.
- #1 Rainbow Point & Yovimpa Point
- #2 Black Birch Canyon
- #3 Ponderosa Point
- #4 Aqua Canyon
- #5 Natural Bridge (Emily’s Favorite)
- #6 Farview Point
- #7 Piracy Point
- #8 Swamp Canyon
- #9 Bryce Point & Paria View
- #10 Inspiration Point
- #11 Sunset Point (including Navajo Loop Trail)
- #12 Sunrise Point
- #13 Fairyland Canyon
- Red Canyon (not a viewpoint but just outside the park)
We even took an unplanned hike and hiked the Navajo Loop Trail. As we hiked, I kept bumping into people because I was so busy looking all around. It seemed everywhere I looked there was an interesting view to take in. Emily and I think it is the prettiest, most interesting place we’ve ever seen.
We stayed a bit too late. We stayed busy just past sunset (which is pretty late in Summer). This caused us to drive a lonely drive to get to Zion in the dark. We were in the middle of nowhere and (I) misjudged food and fuel. It was a bit of a nerve-wracking drive (and made our trip feel more like an adventure than it should have felt like)!
Great day! But we could easily spend much more time in this place. We will go back here someday to do a lot more hiking and some biking!
I’ve been to 6 National parks so far and Bryce is currently my favorite. See my force-ranked list here:
https://deanorolls.com/travel/deanos-favorite-national-parks-and-monuments/
Hiking Navajo Loop Trail in Bryce Canyon National Park
After spending a day in Bryce Canyon National Park we found a trail that looked interesting. So, we hiked it. We are sure glad we did!!! The Navajo Loop Trail wound up being the highlight of our day in the park.
2.6 miles, 623 feet elevation gain. Emily and I really liked Bryce Canyon. The landscape is very interesting. We didn’t really intend to hike at all the day we were there. We started at the back of the park and had hit all the stops back to the entrance. We ended up the day in the main amphitheater near Sunset Point (around sunset). As we were looking at the view, we noticed a trail that went down into the canyon. We decided we’d do it. Quick gear change and we were headed down the path. This hike was so freaking cool. Everywhere you looked there was something beautiful to look at. I probably took more pictures per step on this hike than any hike I’ve ever been on. We were so glad we did it. It was not a super long hike, but it did have some pretty intense elevation drop/gain and the trail was very cool as you snaked down into the canyon (and then back up). We did it in the late afternoon around sunset and I think that is probably the best time to do it. It was not as hot as it could have been and the sunset/shadows on everything made for great photo-taking opportunities. Emily said it was the best hike she’d ever been on. From a sheer scenic standpoint, I’d have to agree. The only reason it is not higher on my list is it was a little on the short side to make it truly epic. We could have done a few other trails that connected to the one we were on. This could have been super fun and might have moved this hike up the all-time epic list. Regardless, for a hike that we didn’t even set out to do it was a total surprise and we are so glad we did it.
It was spectacular and currently sits at #3 on my top hikes of all time:
https://deanorolls.com/hiking/deanorolls-epic-ground-pounds/
7/24/2019
DeanoRolls (@deanoroll5) 